Pay-TV Operator Launches OTT Service

Consumers’ appetite for video content is growing at an insatiable rate. With more devices and content available than ever before, it is no surprise that OTT streaming services are a major focus for those of us in the TV industry.

When Netflix announced it would arrive in the UK in 2012, Europe’s largest Pay-TV broadcaster launched a non-linear OTT service earlier in the same year to compete head-on, at the same time targeting a new type of consumer.

The operator, aware that launching a service which may compromise its highly successful satellite subscription business, carefully defined product bundles at price-points which enabled them to increase OTT subscriber numbers without affecting DTH churn rates.

The established and successful service offers new revenue streams from video content accessible across mobiles, tablet, TVs, games consoles and PCs, with the ability to optimise and target a wide variety of new customer segments with a choice of different product bundles and offers. The operator can target both casual and price conscious consumers with pay-as-you-go and low commitment one-month subscriptions, with much lower customer acquisition costs.

From their long standing partnership with MPP Global, the Pay-TV operator made a straight-forward decision to choose eSuite to support the launch of its IPTV services.

The pay-as-you-go service is aimed at the 13 million homes reluctant to take on Pay-TV and is a significant strategic move. The OTT service has seen Europe’s largest broadcaster reduce its reliance on traditional subscription DTH Pay-TV revenues, enabling consumers to ‘dip in’ and ‘dip out’ of the service whenever they like.

eSuite, MPP Global’s fully integrated cloud Identity Management, CRM and eCommerce platform, powers new business models for the next generation of OTT TV services. The platform handles the multiplicity of devices and simplifies the management of thousands of offers to multiple customer segments. By delivering personalisation and more ways for people to buy, eSuite increases conversion rates and reduces churn for a longer lasting customer. eSuite is the unfair advantage to the broadcaster in a competitive landscape.

The broadcaster is able to manage the entire billing lifecycle, with a centralised customer view detailing all of their customer information, such as their buying habits, viewing preferences and the types of devices used to access the service.

With eSuite, the company can offer its OTT customers a range of flexible pricing packages and a lightweight payment journey for a range of content bundles, such as the Entertainment, Movies and Sports packages. The company is able to utilise the eWallet technology in eSuite to provide one-click transactions and a wide range of consumer options across multiple payment types, methods and channels. User self-care enables customers to add or remove subscriptions, display their order history or update their preferred payment method.

A key attraction of the OTT service, in contrast with a traditional DTH service, is that customers do not need to enter into a contract, with the service allowing the purchase of a month, week or even a day pass to access the range of content available.

With sports being such an integral part of its offering, the broadcaster saw the opportunity to offer consumers access to its range of sports broadcasting without entering into a long term commitment. This was the driving force behind offering day passes, which enables consumers to watch a range of sports over 24hr time period, with no set-up or installation costs. The broadcaster has subsequently created week passes to support events such as test cricket, TDF, tournaments and similar days which span across multiple days. Using the functionality of eSuite, the organisation is able to create a range of offers and promotions to entice new customers and retain current ones.

The partnership with MPP Global saw the OTT service quickly deployed to market in weeks, enabling Europe’s largest broadcaster to target new audiences, grow viewer interaction and drive new revenues and profit margins.

“The operator needed to provide a highly flexible and fully integrated, easy to use and accessible eCommerce service to its OTT offering. We are proud that once again, MPP Global’s eSuite has been the solution for an industry leader. Our reputation is borne of our business partners and we like to think we share the leading edge together.”

Chris CheneyCTO, MPP Global

Project Goals

Flexible Pricing Packages

The OTT service offers consumers a choice between different pay-as-you-go product bundles, based on their own needs and preferences.

Increase Customer Retention

Like all broadcasters, customer retention at low churn rates was an important objective of the project. Offering a range of promotions to retain customers, the broadcaster can target customers who are reaching the end of their entitlement period, or after it ends, with offers to ’win them back’.

Centralised Payment Solution

The eCommerce and Billing functionality in eSuite provides customers with a fast and smooth system which makes product purchasing customer-friendly. With eWallet technology, customers are able to purchase items with just one click, enhancing the user experience and making it as seamless as possible.

Offer a Brand New TV Experience

With consumers increasingly using mobile devices, the OTT service offers viewers a direct way to watch quality content anytime and anywhere. Without the necessity of entering into a contract, customers can view their choice of content at any time they like and return to the service easily and quickly.

Conclusion

The OTT service enables Europe’s largest broadcaster to leapfrog the global leader in online video by leveraging best of breed consumer management with leading content, providing its customers with the option to seamlessly watch sports, entertainment and movies on a personal device.

Since the implementation of eSuite, the OTT offering has experienced substantial growth with the service’s subscribers growing 30% in the last year. The last 12 months has seen a 12-fold increase in transaction volumes. Sports transactions have trebled since the introduction of a weekly sports pass, with the number reaching over one million in 2015. The operator is seeing its highest growth levels for over 11 years.

The flexible pricing, innovative technology, user experience, range of vouchers and choice of content available have helped the organisation’s churn rate reach its lowest amount in 12 years. By the end of 2014, the number of customers churning fell to 10%, helped by the effective way the company can target its customers with the latest offers and incentives.

The Client Said

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The OTT market is developing rapidly, with global revenues expected to top over $50 billion in the coming years. By launching an OTT service which meets the growing demands of consumers, operators and broadcasters can compete with the industry disruptors and reach a larger audience.